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INDONESIAN · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

si.

definite article used before the names of those with whom the speaker and interlocutor is intimate or familiar with

2 characters1 syllables approx.Bahasa Indonesia language

Meaning & usage

article/ˈsi/Standard-Indonesian[ˈsi]Standard-Indonesian
  1. definite article used before the names of those with whom the speaker and interlocutor is intimate or familiar with

    Tiada satupun yang berani pada si Tigor pemberani.
    Kukatakan pada si Yopi kecil, janganlah marah
  2. definite article used before a noun referring to a particular person with a particular characteristic

    Si penjual jamu itu cantik sekali.
    Dia tertawa dengan si orang asing itu.
  3. definite article used before a nickname, typically for a subject whose well-known attributes are referred to by an adjective

    Namanya si Putih
    Si Gendut
  4. definite article used before animals

    si kucing
Where this word comes from

Inherited from Malay si, from Proto-Austronesian *si. Compare Central Bikol si, Chamorro si, and Tagalog si.

noun/ˈsi/Standard-Indonesian[ˈsi]Standard-Indonesian
  1. synonym of kota (“city”)

    historical
Where this word comes from

Unadapted borrowing from Japanese 市(し) (shi, “city”). Romanised according modified Kunrei-shiki romanization.

noun/ˈsi/Standard-Indonesian[ˈsi]Standard-Indonesian
  1. apheretic form of seksi (“section”)

particle/ˈsi/Standard-Indonesian[ˈsi]Standard-Indonesian
  1. Used following interrogative words for emphasis

    Apa si yang dicari?
  2. Used to express verity based on the speaker's sentiment, often indicates certain contrast: truly, actually; after all, so

    modal
    Tidak apalah, saya si tidak salah.
Where this word comes from

Borrowed from Betawi [Term?].

noun/ˈsi/Standard-Indonesian[ˈsi]Standard-Indonesian
  1. si: seventh note of a major scale

Where this word comes from

From Italian si in the solmization of Guido of Arezzo, from the initials of Latin Sāncte Iohannēs (“Saint John (the Baptist)”) in the lyrics of the scale-ascending hymn Ut queant laxis by Paulus Deacon; thus, also an initialism of Sāncte Iohannēs.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.